photography by Jon Gorr - JonGorrPhoto.com
Ezra J. Stanley is a multi-award winning Screen Artist and Writer. He is a two-time winner of the Best Commercial Award at the HollyShorts Film Festival, billed as the "Cannes of Short Films." A native of San Francisco, and with creole roots in Belize, he is Maya Mestizo and Garifuna (Black Carib) giving him a versatile on screen look. Ezra J is the brand face of the Cannes Lions and AICP awarded Michelob ULTRA Courtside Campaign, with Peyton Manning and Scottie Pippen. It is one of the biggest national commercials of the Pandemic, bringing the NBA’s courtside views to the home, through Microsoft Teams virtual technology. He’s starring in Junior, an Oakland based short film garnering official selections and awards, including the 2020 SF Indie Film Fest and Winner of the 2020 Detroit Black Film Fest. He won the Best Commercial award as auteur Writer-Director for his Toymail “Pancakes” Commercial with a world premiere at Hollywood’s TCL Chinese Theatres, screening with Oscar winning animations Bear Story, Oscar winning Manoman, and Palm D’or winner Waves 98. Stanley’s director work ranges from inspirational and uplifting, to the twisted and humorous branded commercials, music videos, and fine art. He creates fine art paintings and video art, and in 2020 had his video art selected for exhibition at the Lightbox Gallery in Manhattan.
At SF State, he overindulged in courses in film theory and history ultimately receiving a BA in Cinema. He later co-founded AboveGrey Pictures with classmate turned producer-cinematographer Alejandro Wilkins who is also a recipient of the 2016 ICG’s Emerging Cinematographer Award. Stanley had his debut in SHOOT Magazine’s 2010 New Directors Showcase selected as one of “the world’s hot New Directors,” held at New York’s Directors Guild of America theater. As a writer-director at his company AboveGrey Pictures, Ezra J Stanley has showcased today’s leading tech, fashion, painters, dancers and Grammy winners through his award winning cinematic commercials, and concerts to audiences that number into thousands. Producer-Director, Michael Axtell now co-heads with Stanley at AboveGrey Pictures. The boutique works as a strike team consisting of top film and advertising talent creating commercials, music videos, films, and print ads.